Alice Jacob

Alice Jacob (26 January 1862 – 31 July 1921) was an Irish botanical illustrator, lace designer, and design teacher.

Life Alice Jacob was born in 1862 in New Zealand, to Irish parents. The family returned to Ireland in 1871 to live in Dublin. Her family were Quakers, with her father Anthony Pim Jacob running a temperance hotel at 88 Thomas Street. Jacob went on to attend the Dublin Metropolitan School of Art (DMSA), and was awarded the Gilchrist Trust Scholarship in 1882 and a free studentship in 1888. She died in Dublin on 31 July 1921. becoming very established in this field by 1900. Much of this work drew on her botanical studies, with elements incorporated into designs for lace, floral damask, embroidery, crochet, and painted silk. She was a frequent prizewinner in London, and was part of the movement to elevate the position of crafts in the art world. In particular, she produced illustrations of Sir Frederick Moore's collection of orchids, painting more than 150 such illustrations from 1908 to 1919. Her work was demonstrably different from Shackleton's. Her illustrations were quite scientifically rigorous, depicting the specimen from numerous angles, as well as dissections and enlargements. She studied the Irish language was a member of the Gaelic League, she signed and dated her paintings using Gaelic script.